High Noon (Collector's Edition) | Gary Cooper, Thomas Mitchell

High Noon (Collector's Edition) | Gary Cooper, Thomas Mitchell | 2 Disc Ultimate Edition

DVDs:

High Noon (Collect...

	High Noon (Collector's Edition) Gary Cooper, Thomas Mitchell Republic Pictures, 2002 average customer review:based on 175 reviews view larger image
	for more information click here

highly recommended

One of the greatest Westerns ever made gets the deluxe treatment on this superior disc from Republic Home Video's Silver Screen Classics line of special-edition DVDs. Written by Carl Foreman (who was later blacklisted during the anticommunist hearings of the '50s) and superbly directed by Fred Zinnemann, this 1952 classic stars Gary Cooper as just-married lawman Will Kane, who is about to retire as a small-town sheriff and begin a new life with his bride (Grace Kelly) when he learns that gunslinger Frank Miller (Ian MacDonald) is due to arrive at high noon to settle an old score. Kane seeks assistance from deputies and townsfolk, but soon realizes he'll have to stand alone in his showdown with Miller and his henchmen. Innovative for its time, the suspenseful story unfolds in approximate real time (from 10:40 a.m. to high noon in an 84-minute film), and many interpreted Foreman's drama as an allegorical reflection of apathy and passive acceptance of Senator Joseph McCarthy's anticommunist campaign. Political underpinnings aside, this remains a milestone of its genre (often referred to as the first "adult" Western), and Cooper is flawless in his Oscar-winning role. The first-rate DVD gives this landmark film all the respect it deserves, beginning with a digitally remastered transfer from the original film negative. Additional features include the exclusive documentary The Making of High Noon, hosted by film historian Leonard Maltin and featuring interviews with the late Lloyd Bridges (who played Cooper's rival ex-deputy), director Fred Zinnemann, and producer Stanley Kramer. Also included is the original theatrical trailer and a special chapter stop highlighting the Oscar-winning song "Do Not Forsake Me." Offered in English and dubbed French and Spanish, with English closed-captioning or Spanish and French subtitles. --Jeff Shannon

for more information click here

Don't shove me Harv. I'm tired of being shoved.

High Noon (Two-Disc Ultimate Collector's Edition)
Quite a bit has been said about this film.
Then again, it's 56 years old.
Forget about the Hollywood blacklist period, the trouble behind the scenes, and any politically inclined agenda.
This is probably the first adult western that "holds up".
A good script.
A good director.
A good cast.
A good soundtrack.
All on a small budget and short shooting schedule.
Unheard of now-a-days.
No color.
No CGI.
No fancy hoop-dee-doo credits.
This version deserves some attention.
The restoration is totally amazing. More so if you've seen the original.
3 tracks available. Re-mastered. Enhanced re-mastered. Commentary...which is very low key and quite entertaining.
A classic film with stars long gone...not forgotten.
Go.

for more information click here

2 Disc Ultimate Edition

I can't believe someone gave this film a 1 star simply because he wasn't pleased with Amazon's write up of the film.

Yes, it is remastered, and yes its filled with an entire disc of special features.

And yes, the actual film itself is an absolute classic.

a great study in honor and duty

I dont think any of us has been as isolated as gary cooper was in that town, when it came to finding support and maybe a true friend when you needed one. I think why you watch this over and over again on repeated viewings, is the great character studies...I mean would we help and stand up for right when it came down to it?...everybody gave a great performance in that movie!...by the way,I watched the first half of the lionsgate new edition last night..and I must say, they did this movie proud!...great picture and sound... an improvement over past editions...notice the great facial closeups..you can see every bead of tension mounting stress and sweat ( o.k. im sure it was hot as well...)....contrast was corrected from past editions , great job!

for more information click here

a brave man facing certain death

This is an "adult" western in that the townpeople act like townspeople. When faced by the possibility of an attack by five desperados, they prefer to do nothing and hope for the best. The movie may have also had a political viewpoint. We were locked in a deadly cold war with the Soviet Union. Many people, just as the townpeople in "High Noon", reckoned that disarmament and coexistence was a safer policy than confrontation.

Gary Cooper, as the resigning marshal of this small town, expects support--in terms of a posse--from the townsfolk. United they will outnumber the desperados many times and should be able to kill or capture them. One by one, however, the would-be posse peals away. Some won't fight for religious reasons, some for personal reasons, some for diability reasons and one, would be hero, is a drunk.

Cooper is left without allies and a bitter pill it is. Even his beautiful wife [Grace Kelly] won't stay. She wants them both to run. The only person who shows some guts is Katie Jurado who wants to fight for the marshal [and we know she would] but he belongs to another woman and so she gets out too.

Cooper, with every expectation of death on a dusty street, waits for the outlaws to arrive on the noon train. Hollywood style, he manages to gun down his enemies and then, in front of the assembled townsmen, throws down his badge in total disgust.

It's a powerful film of a brave man and of human frailty.

Ron Braithwaite author of Mexican Conquest novels, "Skull Rack" and "Hummingbird God."

for more information click here

A great way to spend an evening

This classic film won Gary Cooper his only Oscar. High Noon is basically a morality play placed in the old west. A precursor to the television series 24, High Noon occurs in near real time. Even in its day, this was a low budget movie, and although as an author I'm biased, High Noon proves that a excellent script in the hands of a competent director can beat the razzmatazz of a big budget production.

The special features includes one interesting short--The Making of High Noon--, but no commentary. The DVD has been digitally mastered and it looks and sounds great on modern home equipment.

High Noon is a great film and whether you like Westerns, classic films, Gary Cooper, or catching future stars in early roles, you'll enjoy High Noon.
The Shut Mouth Society
The Shopkeeper

for more information click here